NORMAN, Okla.  Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops named senior Paul Thompson his starting quarterback Thursday after incumbent Rhett Bomar was kicked off the team for receiving excessive compensation for a summer job at a local car dealership. Stoops said Bomar and offensive lineman J.D. Quinn "need to be accountable (for) knowingly" breaking the rules.

The Sooners begin the season No. 5 in the USA TODAY Coaches' Poll, though ballots were cast before Bomar and Quinn were dismissed Wednesday.

Oklahoma's national title hopes are in question given the loss of Bomar, who set a school freshman record last year with 2,018 passing yards. Thompson, a fifth-year senior who lost the job to Bomar last season in the second game and converted to receiver, was a backup quarterback in 2002 and 2003.

"I don't believe Rhett had that much experience that we're losing," Stoops said, adding it's not as if the Sooners were returning Jason White after he had won the Heisman Trophy.

"I never trumped us for the national championship. We can still be awfully good. We can still compete for the Big 12 championship."

Under new offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson, Stoops said the coaching staff will adapt the offense a bit more to suit Thompson's athletic ability. Thompson won the starting job entering last season but relinquished it to Bomar after an opening loss to TCU. Stoops said that decision was made because Bomar was considered the future of the program.

"Paul has really good experience," Stoops said before the team met for its first fall practice. "We're expecting Paul to do well."

Thompson's backups will be sophomore Joey Halzle, a junior college transfer from Golden West College (Calif.), and freshman Sam Bradford.

Regarding Bomar's and Quinn's involvement with Big Red Sports/Imports, a Norman car dealership now under new ownership, Stoops said the players accepted excessive payments over an extended period.

"In the end, the players need to be accountable," Stoops said. "We can't spend every minute with them. Our compliance staff cannot spend every minute with them. When are they held accountable? In the end, ultimately they are. These guys are 19, 20 years old. They knowingly did something over a period of time; they are plenty old enough that they understand the rules. They understand what's right and wrong."

Stoops also said he will release both players from their scholarships to give them an opportunity to transfer. Athletics director Joe Castiglione said once the school's compliance staff gathered and confirmed the information, they acted "swiftly and decisively" within 24 hours. He also said the school had proper "checks and balances" in place but "if someone wants to figure a means to get around it and engage in something unethical, then there are situations that aren't foolproof."

It is unclear if the Sooners will face NCAA sanctions or forfeit any wins from last season. In May, the NCAA put Oklahoma on two years' probation for recruiting violations committed by former men's basketball coach Kelvin Sampson.

"As soon as we knew we had a situation and it was confirmed, we informed the NCAA," Castiglione said about the football case.

NCAA President Myles Brand praised the school's immediate action but refused Thursday to speculate on whether there will be an NCAA investigation.

In his first public comments on his dismissal, Bomar told Oklahoma City TV station KOCO on Thursday: "I respect the decision that Coach Stoops made and the administration above him. We have to live with that, you know, we have to move on.

"But I wish the best for the program. I cared about this program, and I don't want anybody to think that we didn't."